What questions did you have about Arthur and Marc Brown? Let’s see if we can find the answers to some of your questions! We found lots of interviews with Marc Brown that we’d like to share with you!

Why is Arthur an aardvark? Arthur started as a bedtime story. My son Tolon wanted me to tell him a story about an UNUSUAL animal. “Aardvark” popped up. Then he wanted to know what the aardvark’s name was. I picked a name that started with the letter A, as in aardvark. That’s how Arthur was born!

Where do you get ideas for your stories? My stories all start from things that happen to people in real life. I think that’s where the funniest and best ideas are, just like Arthur Writes a Story. I don’t just sit down and write a story and expect that it will turn out perfectly the FIRST TIME. Usually each story is rewritten as many as 30 TIMES before I’m happy with the way it sounds!

How did you first become interested in storytelling? My great grandmother and grandmother told my sisters and me stories all the time. Sometimes we would ask for a spooky story. Grandma Thora would tell us a spooky story, but first she would take out her false teeth. That made the story really spooky!!!! Does GRANDMA THORA sound familiar?

How did you become so good at drawing pictures? I practice drawing every single day. If you want to get good at anything, You have to practice. STOP and THINK: Marc Brown says that most of his story ideas come from things that happened to him in his real life AND that he practices drawing everyday. Does this remind you of another author that we love?

What was your very FIRST book? I created my first Arthur book in It was called Arthur’s Nose. The night that my son asked me to tell him a story about an unusual character, I started telling about about an aardvark who hated his nose. The aardvark, of course, was named Arthur, and that story became Arthur's Nose, the first book in the Arthur Adventure series. D.W. doesn’t even have a name in this book and you will notice a lot of differences in the way that Arthur and his friends and family look!

Did you notice that Arthur looked very different in that first book? Marc Brown changed Arthur’s look a few times over the years.

Where did you get the idea for all of your characters? Most of the characters were created after one person or a mix of people from my life. Many characters were inspired by people I knew when I was growing up and going to school. Mr. Ratburn is based on the "meanest math teacher ever," and Grandma Thora is based on my real grandmother Thora, "the best storyteller ever.”. Buster was made after my best friend in elementary school, Terry Johnson, who was a real practical joker. Terry spent a lot of time in the principal's office. In third grade, I spent a lot of time watching a girl named Patricia DelPorto instead of doing my math. She had curly hair and long eyelashes. On Valentine's Day, I remember waiting to get a valentine from her. She is, of course, Sue Ellen, and that's where I got the idea for Arthur's Valentine. My REAL sisters, Bonnie, Colleen, and Kimberly have all served as role models for the characters D.W. and Francine

Do you hide something in your pictures? YES!!!! If you look closely, you will find my children’s names hidden in the pictures of all of my books except Arthur’s Nose. I didn't get the idea to hide their names until the 2 nd book, Arthur's Eyes. One day my sons were fighting in my studio, and I hid their names in the illustrations I was working on and asked them to see if they could find them. It took them about an hour, and I thought, “Hmmm... this is a good game.” Have fun searching!!!!!!! Tolon, Tucker, & Eliza

What did you learn about Marc Brown and his Arthur books? Go back to your seat and write at least 4 interesting things you’ve learned about his books. Write down 2 of your favorite Arthur books. If you have time during independent reading, look through his books to see if you find any of his “hidden names”.